I would like to wish everyone a happy New Year, and I hope and pray that all may grow in love for the Lord at this beginning of a new calendar year. I will be beginning my studies again soon, kicking off the new year with a priestly formation week at the Seminary. Please pray for the Seminarians during this new semester!
In other news, I would like to offer the Archbishop's column in the St. Louis Review from December 16 for those of you who may have questions concerning the St. Stanislaus Kostka parish. In it, the Archbishop outlines the situation and explains all the details quite well.
As archbishop, it is my responsibility to explain the situation to all of the faithful of the archdiocese, who are so deeply affected by what has happened, in order that they not be subjected to further confusion and division, that they not be deceived about the lawfulness and validity of sacraments celebrated by the schismatic priest and that they pray for the reconciliation of those who gone into schism. (Read more...)
Please pray for the board members and priest who have turned away from communion with the Catholic Church, and also for Archbishop Burke, who has definitely been misrepresented by most media outlets as well as the board members and priest of St. Stanislaus Kostka parish. Unlike what they have said, the Archbishop is not 'in it for the money' or 'not being Christ-like.' Read his column if you disagree.
I just received a prayer request from the master of the blog "To Jesus Through Mary." Please pray for his mother to be accepting and encouraging of his possible vocation to the priesthood.
Please also pray for all parents to be willing and open to any call that their children may receive. Many vocations are not cultivated because of non-supportive parents.
I have posted some pictures I took of Kenrick-Glennon Seminary's St. Joseph Chapel (the main chapel at the seminary, used for our main liturgies) on my Seminary website; you can view them by clicking here. It is a very beautiful chapel, especially since we now have installed pews in the whole chapel, and moved our pipe organ console into the choir loft (it is a beautiful organ as well!).
In addition to taking a short break from studying from exams (resting the ol' brain cells...), I wanted to tell you about an interesting insight I had while studying for my upcoming Social Psychology exam (typically, I'm no great fan of the social sciences, but they aren't all bad...).
I was reading about common traits found in people who rate themselves as being 'chronically lonely.' According to my book, chronically lonely people often think and behave in ways that reduce their likelihood of establishing new, rewarding relationships and lack social skills. This typically causes a spiral into more isolation, and leads to more problems further down the road.
This brings up an interesting point: What happens to all these chronically lonely people? And, should we let them fall into this downward spiral? The answer, of course, is 'No.' As Christians, we believe that we are part of a community united in Christ, and this community suffers as much as its weakest members. We must make the extra effort to reach out to our brothers and sisters who may be lonely or feel cut off from the world.
Is there someone in your family in this situation? In your school? At your workplace? Make an effort to sit with them at a meal. Invite them to a movie. Heck, just say a quick 'Hi, how are you doing?' in the hallway every day. You never know—you might end up liking the person! But it takes time... and can be very hard to do. This is why we must, as St. John of the Cross (whose feast day, coincedentally, is today) pick up our crosses and follow Him down the road to Calvary out of love for Him and for our brothers and sisters.
We should be especially aware of children who are becoming isolated from the outside world by watching TV, spending too much time on the computer or being alone. Say a prayer to your Guardian Angel and to the Holy Spirit to help pick you up and make you an instrument of Jesus' for helping his lowliest and poorest of brothers and sisters.
